Oh, and $75 per year in 2005 is $89 per year today when you adjust for inflation. So you're paying $10 per year extra for free access to Amazon streaming TV movies. Watch two movies, it pays for itself.

The widget says it is worth it.It saves me so money and time. Gas is $3.55 a gallon. It doesn't take much in the way of running around town looking for stuff for it to cost me much more than whatever I pay through Amazon.Plus streaming. We stream movies several days a week.Plus recurring subscriptions. I save $12.00 a month on cat food alone through Amazon and it comes straight to my door without me having to do anything.

i currently have a free trial of the student prime, but you can't take advantage of streaming. i would sign-up for regular prime though if the amazon app worked with chromecast. yes i know you can cast the tab, but it doesn't seem to work all that great.

Triumph:They should still have a $79 option for people who don't want access to their video and e-book libraries.

I would agree with this, but there actually might be some sort of negative impact that is unforseen. For example, that puts a "price" on their online streaming services. Given the way Hollywood works, they may take that as a sign that Amazon is undercutting competition.

Is Amazon Prime Worth It?Yes. Prime will save you money.You order enough Prime-eligible items that you will save money on shipping costs alone.Without Prime, you would pay at least $3.99 per shipment.At $79 per year (Prime's old fee), you would pay $1.89 per shipment.At $99 per year (Prime's new fee), you would pay $2.11 per shipment.

Why are people biatching about a $20 dollar price increase? Free two day shipping alone is worth $100 a year indeed.

You didn't read the link someone posted earlier. There are allegations that Amazon encourages its vendors to increase the price of an item to cover the shipping charge, thus giving Amazon higher "referral fees." If true, then you likely already pay for the two-day shipping in the item price, and you're really just paying Amazon a premium to shop there (and watch its very restricted selection of streaming content).

This says it's definitely worth it for me, but it seems to be ignoring the free shipping often available to non-Prime users. I'm not ordering a fire extinguisher, so that's fine. Frankly, with their awesome distribution system, it's not much different than ground shipping. I made my last order Monday evening. An hour and a half later, I thought of something else, canceled it, and reordered with the addition to sneak onto the free shipping. Since it seems like they deliberately sit on FSSS orders for at least a day, I have assumed this option goes away with a prime 2 day order (and doesn't that have a minimum now too)? Anyway, it was delivered today. I guess prime would have gotten it here at least by yesterday, maybe the day before (the order was well after business hours anywhere in north america). I still got the stuff - one of which I really won't be able to deal with until tomorrow anyway.

golden goat:You didn't read the link someone posted earlier. There are allegations that Amazon encourages its vendors to increase the price of an item to cover the shipping charge, thus giving Amazon higher "referral fees." If true, then you likely already pay for the two-day shipping in the item price, and you're really just paying Amazon a premium to shop there (and watch its very restricted selection of streaming content).

I do wish that they would release their video app for Android though. I know they're trying to coerce Android users over into the Kindle Fire sandbox but I'm quite happy with my Nexus tablet and don't want their locked down version of Android.

You can still split the shipping among four people, so considering that even with the price increase you're only going to be paying around $25 or less each... It's worth it. You also get the streaming service, and if you decide to go with that, Netflix, & Hulu Plus while cutting your cable, it's a HUGE savings.

rynthetyn:I do wish that they would release their video app for Android though. I know they're trying to coerce Android users over into the Kindle Fire sandbox but I'm quite happy with my Nexus tablet and don't want their locked down version of Android.

It probably is more of the same reason the Netflix app doesn't work on all Android phones.

I had 89 orders in 2013, which comes to $1.11. This isn't counting movies and tv streaming. This also isn't counting sharing your account with 4 family members, and all their orders (like my wife). I order for home and 3 small companies.

Solid State Vittles:You can share your Amazon Prime with four other people, or at least you used to be able to. Did they factor that in? If not, then along with speed and streaming content that's three things they're not accounting for. Worthless article. Very worthless.

Without Prime, you would pay at least $3.99 per shipment.At $79 per year (Prime's old fee), you would pay $Infinity per shipment.At $99 per year (Prime's new fee), you would pay $Infinity per shipment.

Intrepid00:What the hell are people buying all the time from Amazon. I live in a pretty pricey area and Target is usually cheaper even if Amazon doesn't collect sales tax.

My guess is you have to have a family for it to be really worth it.

I buy all kinds of things from Amazon or online in general: deodorants, soaps, stuff for the dog, sometimes clothes, electronics, gifts. The list goes on.

I wish I lived in your pricey area if Target is usually cheaper than Amazon, because that's pretty much never the case in my experience. It seems like most everything I'd consider buying online is noticeably less expensive to get through Amazon (even factoring in shipping costs) compared to buying them at Target, Walmart, Petsmart, Lowe's, or Home Depot.

But also, in a lot cases it's easier to get the exact brand and variety of whatever item I'm looking for if I get it on Amazon. Otherwise, I either have to make the decision to pick up whatever random brands the stores in my area offer, or I have to drive around the city to many different stores. Honestly, for a lot of stuff, I'm not particular, but for the few things I am particular about, it's nice that I don't have to deal with the annoying, expensive and time consuming prospect of driving all over the city, dealing with traffic, wasting gas, and giving up my free time to do something I don't have to.

Yeah, we saved about 50% on shipping. This doesn't include the fact that that we stream movies all the freaking time, the fact that my daughter gets her Sesame Street viewing on prime, and the fact that a good percent (10-25%) is weight-based shipping.

I figured it out for 2012, and rental fees for movies alone were in the $500-700 range. Weight based shipping was another couple hundred, and we didn't stream nearly as much as we did in 2013.

Marcus Aurelius:InterruptingQuirk: Is it taking into account that Amazon Prime shipments may be increasing the price for Prime members in order to secretly cover that two day ship?

I have checked, via TOR and anonymous browsing VM, that my Prime prices are the same as they are when I'm logged into my account.

Anecdotal, but I check again every time I see someone bring it up. I just spot checked a couple items, and they're the same price in both places.

I occasionally browse Amazon on a device that I'm not logged into. When I do go to long into my Prime account to order said item I've never seen a difference in price.

Intrepid00:What the hell are people buying all the time from Amazon. I live in a pretty pricey area and Target is usually cheaper even if Amazon doesn't collect sales tax.

My guess is you have to have a family for it to be really worth it.

Amazon has a shiat ton more items for sale than any local store, big box or not. If the price is close enough (say, within 10%) and I want it that day I'll go to a store and buy it, assuming a local store carries it. If it's significantly cheaper online or if what I want isn't available at a local store then I'll order it.

I'm a tech geek and work in a specialty trade. Many things I want aren't carried in store. For example, I recently did a complete audio upgrade in my car. My local stores have an awful selection of speakers, head units, install kits, etc. Using Amazon I got the exact speakers I wanted (at half price since I found open box items on Amazon for the exact ones I wanted. Lucky me.), the install kit and wiring harness adapter, the fuse holder, fuses, high quality signal wire, and trim removal tools that I wanted. Absolutely zero of those items were available locally, save for the head unit. I bought that at BestBuy because the price was close enough. Best Buy had a different install kit for the head unit but it didn't have the pocket in it that I wanted.

I made 92 orders in 2013. It was worth it to me, not even counting the streaming service.

I redid my kitchen last year and bought a refrigerator on Amazon. Free two day shipping. Appliance stores wanted $150 for shipping. That's not counting the other 71 orders I apparently placed. I'll probably hit 200 this year as I now order dog food and deodorant on there. Pretty much anything I can get on Amazon I do.